Thinking about an appearance change. Advice?
 

I'm thinking about an appearance change on the order of growing a beard or removing a beard. Has anyone here been hassled after doing this because they don't look like their passport or photo ID?

I was thinking of taking some before and after photos to have on hand if I'm hassled. Anyone have any other advice? I really don't want to get a new DL and passport as I may want to undo the change.

Sorry, but it's sick that anyone would beconcerned about security when making a grooming decision - sorry. It shouldn't be that way and as most of the "id checkers" never actually look at the picture, pretty irrelevant. Someone at immigration may make a comment but folks grow, cut and change hair/hairstyles on a regular basis. Do what you want, leave the pics at home.

Yeah, it's just that I travel nearly every week to completely different places, often out of the country. If there's grief to be had in doing this, I will definitely experience it.

My comment is from personal experience as my driver's license picture looks nothing like me today (happily). And for passports, they are good for 10 years - folks change over that time period - always! There was ONE guy at MSP who made a comment, but no one other than that guy a few years back even notices - really, it's not a big deal.

When I renewed my DL, I briefly thought about wearing a wig and contacts to change my eye color to have my photo taken - but I didn't do it. :D

I used to have a beard. Now I don't. My passport had a photo of me with a beard. Before I renewed my passport I'd get an occasional comment, but that was about it. The TSA in the US commented the most. Passport control in other countries never said a word.

A few months ago I cut off most of my hair and all the beard. Hair was 9 month worth of accumulation, with no trimming at all. Beard was 6 month of accumulation. I didn't have encounter trouble but I was only flying domestically.

My photo ID is only 4 years old, but in that time I have cut my hair (used to be waist length), lost 30 lbs (very visible around my face), gotten contacts. I don't look anything like my ID anymore. No one bats an eye.

I wouldn't do it. Osama Bin Laden has a beard. He is a terrorist. If you grow a beard, you might also be a terrorist. Or, you might be using a really thick beard as a place to hide some toothpaste. I'd go bare.

Mike

I know a guy who wears a beard. He shaves it every 10 years when he renews his passport, so his photo shows him without it. He figures if he has a problem, it would be easy enough to shave to match his photo. However, in decades of frequent international travel, he has never been asked.

I often travel with a man who has to keep changing his appearance so that he can play blackjack, since he is a well-known card counter. It hasn't been a problem at the airport. I conclude that the folks at the airport must know to look at your nose, lips, eyes -- things that don't change -- instead of beard, hairpiece, shaved head -- which is easily changed.

We have traveled to England, Germany, the Netherlands, and Kenya, as well as in the U.S. with no worries.

I have an uncle whose work used to take him the middle east. He had a moustache as long as I had known him until about 10 years ago. As a very frequent flier (UA GS), he found no problems with security agents having problems with his physical appearance vs ID appearance. The benefit came in no longer getting stopped on his appearance (darkly tanned Greek-Italian with a dark moustache). Apparently, that fit into some middle-eastern profile.

I think it's a non-issue.

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Well, you can't do both and you can't do either. :confused:

The only hassles I have witnessed is when he becomes she or vice-versa:eek:

I know someone who had sexual reassignment in Thailand which obviously involved flying from the Gulf Coast to Thailand and back for the various surgeries. At least in Mississippi there is apparently some way you can legally change your gender at DMV and not be hassled. I was surpised because it wasn't the state I would have picked to have a procedure for that. I don't know how she handled the passport, but she was able to get her license changed. I had to get the new information from her when she transferred a vehicle to my name, so that's how I know.